This invention generally relates to food processors and, more particularly, to a food processor including a safety actuator having a positioning tab which provides a visual indication when the actuator is activated.
Household food processors commonly include a bowl and a rotatable shaft that projects upwardly into the bowl on which various selected food processing tools can be mounted to be driven by the shaft. The food processing tools perform various processing operations within the food processing bowl. For example, a household food processor may include a cutting tool, chopping tool, shredding disk, slicing disk, grating wheel and dicing tool. Each of these tools may be separate from each other and are generally disposed into the food processing bowl individually for performing a particular operation. A removable cover or lid is mounted onto the open top of the bowl during use and includes a feed tube having an opening that extends downwardly through the lid into the bowl. The food items to be processed are placed in the feed tube and then manually pushed down through the feed tube into the bowl by a removable food pusher which is adapted to slide down the feed tube. The lid and feed tube are used to keep food from leaving the bowl while the food processor is in use and to prevent fingers or other body parts from coming in contact with the shape food processing tools.
In order to ensure that the lid is safely in place, safety devices have been developed to prevent operation of the food processing tools while the bowl is uncovered. This ensures that the lid is safely covering the bowl and the food processing tools when the food processor is activated. Safety devices have been developed that require a tab extending from the lid to engage with an actuator in the base or motor housing when the lid is properly secured to the top of the bowl. Because the actuator is located within the base and is not visible by the user, it is often unclear how the lid is supposed to be positioned and whether the tab on the lid is in proper contact with the actuator for activating the motor.
It would therefore be desirable to provide a safety device on a food processor with a visual indicator such as a positioning tab that is more intuitive to a user as to how the lid is to be positioned on the bowl and clear as to when the tab is properly engaged with the safety actuator.